Marconi seals £30m deal with BT

Friday 1 February 2002 00:00 BST

TELECOMS equipment group Marconi unveiled a new alliance to help British Telecom enhance its existing network. The £30m contract with BT Wholsesale will see Marconi develop new software at its sites in Coventry and Liverpool.

Work on the project is expected to begin immediately, with the first software transferred onto BT's network next year.

The three-year deal covers BT's existing narrowband network, which has seen increased traffic as more users log on to the internet.

Peter Leach, acting managing director of BT's wholesale network transport division, said the contract would maximise the life of its current network. He added: 'The volume of narrowband traffic across our network is still growing and we need to ensure that our existing network infrastructure continues to manage this traffic in the most efficient way possible.'

Marconi shares were ahead 5% at 26 1/4p today, while BT rose lifted more than 3% to 232p.

Marconi also announced it had completed the sale of its optical components business to Bookham Technologies. The deal, first announced in December, involves Marconi off-loading the division in return for a 9.9% stake in the fibre optics group.

The business, based in Caswell, Northants with another operation in Chelmsford in Essex, employs around 500 people.